The Work Media Internet Marketing Blog

Search Engine Optimization(SEO) - Pay-Per-Click Advertising(PPC) - Website Traffic and Path Analysis - Optimized Press Releases - SEO Copywriting - Blogging - Article Writing - Newsletters - Everything you need to know to be successful in your Internet marketing.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Make Sure Your Landing Pages Work!

The topic of today's post may seem obvious. I mean, who wouldn't make sure their landing pages work before launching a pay per click campaign? Well, we do make the assumption that you would test your pages before launching the campaign...but what about afterwards?

You should check your landing pages periodically. Hey, things happen. If your landing page is completely static (straight-up HTML with no server-side code), then chances of it breaking are minimal. But what about your form?

Your landing page probably has some kind of form. If it doesn't, then what's the point? Your form will have to use some kind of server-side component or script to deliver the contents of the form to your site (or to process an order). And that's where things can break.

We have a client whose account recently began performing quite poorly. It turns out that her hosting company had moved her site to a new server. In the process, they had broken the form confirmation page (the page that sends the contents of the form to our client in an email). We spotted this by submitting the form ourselves to make sure it still works. We did this on a hunch after noticing that her site had stopped showing any conversions in her search engine conversion stats.

So...don't let this happen to you. Once a week, check all of your landing pages to make sure your forms are still working. The nickel you save could be your own.

If you need some active, professional help with your pay per click management, contact Work Media at 888-299-4837 or email Info@WorkMedia.net.

Labels: internet marketing, landing page, paid search, pay per click, ppc, search engine marketing, sem

Friday, February 29, 2008

Generating Leads via Paid Search: Sometimes It Just Ain't Easy

We have been involved in a project that is very different from the way we typically work with our clients. Rather than funding their own paid search accounts and then paying us a management fee (generally figured as a percentage of the ad spend), our client arranged for a special affiliate program that pays us a certain amount for each lead. We normally don't agree to such arrangements, but we have done enough work for this client in the past with good results that we thought we already had a good feel for what to do. We expected to make more money this way.

You just don't know how something is going to work out until you try it. Even though the site and service we are promoting is very similar to what we have done in the past for this client...something is different. We are driving traffic, but that traffic is not converting into leads. No one is filling out our client's form. We are on our third different landing page design, and still no luck. People just don't seem to trust our client.

If you are in this situation (spending money to drive traffic to your site that is not converting), you need to take a hard look at your situation. Do people trust you based on your web site? It may be helpful to get one of those Better Business Bureau logos for your site. Are there certifications in your industry (and corresponding logos) you can get that can prove your level of expertise? Do you have a phone number placed prominently on your landing pages?

Speaking of phone numbers, it is also useful for you to get a separate number specifically associated with the paid search campaign. This way you will know exactly what calls resulted from your paid search ads.

All you can do is test, test, test. It is impossible to predict what will work, and every situation is different. Based on our experience with a similar campaign, we thought we had a good idea of what would work for this particular client. But we were wrong. The lesson? You can never stop testing. Never.

The negative aspect of this is that it will likely cost you some money to do adequate testing before you start making any money. But paid search is much more cost effective than any other type of marketing, and it gives immediate feedback. It can provide you with critical data that can be carried over to other forms of marketing.

So...generating leads via paid search ain't easy, even for experienced Internet marketers like us. But if you are patient, systematic, and willing to absorb some losses in the short-term, you can make it work.

If you could use some help with your pay per click management, contact Work Media at 888-299-4837 or email Info@WorkMedia.net.

Labels: copywriting, internet marketing, landing page, paid search, pay per click, ppc, search engine marketing, sem, web site marketing

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Case Studies that Highlight the Importance of Landing Page Design

We recently came upon a web site with some interesting content:

http://www.marketingexperiments.com.

This site runs experiments to find marketing techniques that work well. The following page:

http://www.marketingexperiments.com/improving-website-conversion/optimizing-site-design.html

shows results from an experiment in which two different landing page designs were tested for a couple of different web sites - the original landing page design and a new landing page designed to meet the expectations of the visitors to the site, based on research of what those expectations are.

In one experiment, the landing page of a service business web site was changed to meet customer expectations in terms of industry-specific visual appearance. The new landing page converted over 12% better. Not bad. In a year's time, that would represent a significant amount of revenue.

In another experiment, a new landing page was tested that used anxiety-reducing elements like testimonials and guarantees. The new landing page converted over 70% better, even though the original landing page looked very professional and was consistent with other landing pages in the industry.

So what is the lesson?

First off, know your customers' expectations. Not just in terms of service and whatnot, but what their expectations are in terms of colors, fonts, design, etc.

Second, use whatever it takes to put your prospects at ease - testimonials, guarantees, anything that proves that what you say is true and that you stand by your word.

Third...you need to create landing pages! Period!

For help creating landing pages for your search engine marketing campaigns, contact Work Media at 888-299-437 or email Info@WorkMedia.net.

Labels: internet marketing, landing page, pay per click, ppc, search engine marketing, search marketing, sem, sponsored search, web site marketing